


Rubatosis

by Madness_of_Xara



Series: Chelley Love [2]
Category: Portal (Video Game)
Genre: Between games as well, But I will do what I can, F/M, Goes on into Post-Portal 2, Guilt, Human Wheatley at first, I would like to update this a lot, Pain, Pre-Portal, Redemption, Regret, Reminiscing, Slow as Hell process, The first few chapters might be triggering, They'll make you uncomfortable, Torture, bondage of the non sexual kind, chelley - Freeform, core wheatley, eventually, forced brain scan, just an idea i had, or at the very least, soul searching
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-01-08
Updated: 2017-01-08
Packaged: 2018-09-15 17:17:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,940
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9247649
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Madness_of_Xara/pseuds/Madness_of_Xara
Summary: Rubatosis - the unsettling awareness of your own heartbeat.Back in his cubicle once more, Wheatley returned to working, hoping to take his mind off of his boss’s request. Surely Caroline would listen to reason so he wouldn’t have to risk carrying out the orders… He shook his head, trying to focus, but it wasn’t easy. It had been so preposterous, what was being asked of him. How would they even go about forcing the woman? Kidnap her and strap her into a chair and threaten her? Surely not… He bit his bottom lip, not noticing how dangerously close he was to drawing blood, his fingers stilling over the keys of his keyboard. Why was he actually thinking about it…? Surely he wasn’t actually thinking about going through with it! But…Just how far was he willing to go to keep his job…?He shook his head rapidly, frowning deeply at himself. No! He was a good man, he couldn’t do that to the poor woman! If she could refuse… then so could he!…Right…?





	

**Author's Note:**

> This was just an idea that I had in my head one day and I couldn't help but start writing it. Like a 'what if' scenario. I dunno how often this one will be updated, but I suppose with the other Portal fic I have about to undergo a slight hiatus while I rewrite it to better flow and make sense, not to mention let me write the other fanfictions I have backed up ((requests)), I might work on this just to get my blood pumping. R&R please! ^^

_The portal underneath him tore at him, trying its hardest to pull him into the void that resided on the opposite end, trying to pull him out of the Chassis. He wasn’t sure why his vocal processors were hurting – oh, wait, he was screaming, that was why. When the lady grabbed him, pulling him out through the portal and yet not out of the Chassis, he began to yell at her._

_“Let_ go _!” he yelled. “We’re in_ space _! Let go! Let_ go _! I’m still connected! I can pull myself in! I can still fix this!”_

_Then he heard it._

_That cold, cruel voice that terrified him down to his central processor._

_“I_ already _fixed it. And you are_ not _coming back!”_

 _“Oh no,” he gasped, feeling every part of his body tremble. “Change of plans! Hold onto me!_ Tighter _!” When he felt his body get ripped away from the lady’s hands, he screamed, his body spinning as it went deeper and deeper in the dark void of space. “Grab me, grab me, grab me,_ GRAB ME!!”

He woke up gasping, his body trembling. He tried desperately to get air into his lungs, his eyes looking around rapidly as he tried to take in his surroundings. A ceiling fan overhead, a small room painted blue, a foot board at the end of his bed, some framed pictures of him and his parents hanging on the wall, a door to the far right, and a large dresser in the opposite corner. He relaxed, panting some. He then closed his eyes, covering them with his arm. It had just been a dream.

A weak smile pulled at his lips.

It had just been a dream.

Sitting up, he ran his fingers through his short hair, blinking his eyes slowly. A yawn escaped him. This was his reality. He wasn’t some small spherical ball of mechanical engineering, designed to be a moron by the brightest minds of the generation. No, no, he was so much more than that! He was a living, breathing human being, and though a bit weird and the epitome of anxiety, he was _not_ a moron. Could a moron get his own place and have a nice, cozy little job in some underground place – no, not _some_ \- the most prestigious underground place?

No, a moron could not.

He liked to think of himself as having an above average intelligence, having a constant flurry of ideas and always planning accordingly. Granted, not all of those ideas and plans ever really worked, but he just took it in stride, believing that it was best that he get those out of his head first to make way for much better ideas and plans! Aperture Science had seen that potential and brought him in under its wing whereas Black Mesa – boy, did that name leave a foul taste in his mouth – had rejected him, calling him incompetent.

Tossing aside his blanket and crawling out of his bed, he stretched out his sleep weary limbs, a few satisfying pops greeting his ears. He then made his way to his dresser, pulling out his work uniform – a white dress shirt, a tie with the Aperture Science logo at the bottom – his was blue, and black dress pants. He laid them on his bed before going to take a morning shower, hoping to wash away the rest of his sleepy state. Once that was done and he had dried off, with his towel wrapped firmly around his waist, he brushed his teeth dutifully and thoroughly. Upon completion, he rinsed off the tooth brush and put it away. He then went and got dressed, airing out the bathroom for a few minutes before rushing back inside to drape his damp towel over the railing of his shower curtain and to brush out his untamed mane of hair. Once his hair was brushed out, he noted with a beaming smile that he looked like a million bucks.

With bright blue eyes, a handsome smile with slight dimples, and messy, wheat color hair that framed a pale face, he thought he looked absolutely dashing! He was just over six foot tall and was as thin as a twig, easily classifying him as lanky, but did he mind? Not in the slightest! It just made it easier to slip between people whenever the facility got busy with excitement. Nowadays, that kind of thing was rare, but it didn’t matter. He was ready for such an event should it ever occur, or so he liked to think.

Glancing at the time, he noted that he was up about an hour earlier than usual. Huh. It sure didn’t feel that way. Oh, well! It just meant that he had time to enjoy a proper breakfast for a change. He usually was running out of his apartment with a slice of buttered toast held firmly between his teeth, but today? He was going to actually make a breakfast worth eating!

Going into the kitchen, he pulled out a package of bacon, his carton of eggs, and a fresh stick of butter. He quickly turned on all of the burners before grabbing the skillets he needed to make his meal. Letting them heat up, he began making himself some scrambled eggs, humming softly to himself. Once they were ready, he buttered up the skillets before promptly pouring in his egg and milk mixture. He then began to peel strip from strip of bacon, placing them in the other skillet. It was rare that he actually got to do this, make an actual breakfast. He did it maybe once a week, if that. His work schedule usually kept him too busy to deal with it, and even though he worked a basic nine to five work shift, he always tried to get as much overtime as possible if he was allowed. After all, his apartment can’t pay for the rent itself! Especially if he wanted to make it look lively and nice.

He sat down and ate for what time he could before he glanced at the clock once more, noting that it was time for him to head out. Sufficiently satisfied, he put away his dirty dishes, put on his dress shoes, grabbed his briefcase, and hurried out of his house, locking the door behind him.

It took a while, getting to work. Around thirty minutes, usually. Today, he got there just a touch earlier, and he wondered if that was a good sign. After all, this was just the second good thing to happen so far! And it wasn’t even noon, yet. His work day was normal for the most part, he felt, working in a small cubicle. He didn’t do much, just typing up reviews, lab results, suggestions, and complaints that had been written out by his coworkers to be sent over to his boss, the famous Cave Johnson. There was usually a lot, so he had taught himself to type rather quickly, always checking everything over at least twice before sending it over to be printed and promptly delivered to the man in charge. Sure, it wasn’t much, but there was always something that needed to be typed up. With as many tests and experiments as there were, the male couldn’t help but wonder why there wasn’t more to type by the end of the day.

“Hey, Wheatley,” a voice behind him said, making the male jump in alarm. He quickly turned and looked up to see a coworker of his, a man named Baldric with vibrant green eyes and slicked back brown hair. The blond was always just a touch jealous of him due to his obviously handsome appearance. “The brass wants to see us.”

“Um… Can it wait? I’m in the middle of working, as you can very obviously see here, and if you didn’t, easy to miss, I don’t blame you.” Wheatley frowned deeply, turning back to his work to save it anyways. He closed it and stood. “What for?”

Baldric shrugged. “Dunno. Whatever it is, it can’t be good, can it?”

“I certainly would hope that it’s good!” Wheatley blanched, now nervous. Well, more than he already was.

“Well, whatever it is, we aren’t the only ones that they want to see. You remember Cosmo?”

“The chap in charge of monitoring the dispersion of gels? Yeah, what about him?”

“We’re also picking him up. Same with Ethan.”

“But he’s in manufacturing!”

“I know.” Baldric frowned deeply, crossing his arms across his chest. “I have no idea what the brass wants. Did you fill your testing quota?”

“Not allowed. I type up the results, so I know how to solve them already.”

“Shit, can’t be that, then. Did you volunteer for that new ‘robot coworker’ thing that they’re trying to do?”

Wheatley looked up in thought before shaking his head. “Not that I remember. Sounds too painful for some reason.”

“Well, I know I did. Being a robot, that would be awesome. But that’s besides the point. I don’t think Ethan did, either…”

As they talked back and forth, trying to figure out what the higher ups could possibly want, they picked up the other two, wondering what it could be that they were needed for. Cosmo, shorter than Wheatley, had pale brown hair and amber eyes, suggested that maybe they earned promotions or raises, looking on the positive side of things. Ethan, around the same height as Cosmo, if not a little taller, with black hair and pink eyes – the result of an accident when he ran a testing track, the cause remaining unknown, couldn’t think of a logical explanation for their gathering. They expected the worse… And that feeling of dread they all felt only heightened when they were brought in to see their boss, the one and only Cave Johnson. He was sitting in his seat, coughing up a storm. It was no secret that he was on his death bed. It was only a matter of time. He already made the announcement for Caroline to pick up where he left off after he was gone.

“Sit down, boys, sit down,” the man told them. They looked at one another reluctantly before sitting down. “Now… I’m sure that you’re wondering why I asked for all of you to show up here today…” He looked at them evenly, gauging their reactions. Wheatley was wringing his tie nervously in his hands, Cosmo was sitting on his hands, biting his lip, Baldric was biting the inside of his cheek, arms crossed across his chest, squeezing them tightly in his hold, and Ethan… He looked eerily calm, though if one paid attention, he was bouncing his knee rather quickly. “It concerns Caroline.”

“Caroline, sir?” Baldric questioned, raising a brow. This seemed to make the others tense up as well.

“Yes,” the man nodded. He coughed into the crook of his arm. They said nothing as they waited on the spell to pass. He then took a deep breath and continued, “She’s… resistant to the idea of becoming the new head of Aperture Science. Especially given how I said to put her in charge in the event that they are unsuccessful in putting me into a machine.” He turned around in his seat and sighed heavily. “She doesn’t want any part of it. And as much as it pains me to harm my right hand woman after all these years... She needs to be in charge. There’s no other woman, no, _human_ that I can trust with my research, my facility… GLaDOS is in the process of being built. All that will be needed is Caroline’s mind.” He turned to them. “I need you boys to help me convince her.”

“Wait,” Ethan said with a frown. “What if the machine is complete before you pass-?”

“It won’t be,” Cave said instantly. His underlings looked at one another in confusion before looking back at him. “The lunar dust apparently causes a lot more medical problems than just a horrible cough and a closer approach to death’s door. It eats away at the primary organs until it gets painful to do much of anything… Then, once they’re deemed useless, then I’ll die.”

“Can’t you get organ transplants?” Cosmo asked meekly.

“No. I’m too old at this point, not to mention that it would just keep postponing the inevitable.” He sighed. “Please. Just try to convince Caroline to take over. Even if you have to force her…” He looked pained, and it wasn’t because of the effects of the lunar dust. “Please.”

They looked at one another to see what they should do. It seemed obvious what they had to do, and yet… “Sir… I-if I may…?” Wheatley spoke up for the first time since arriving in the room.

“What is it?”

“Why doesn’t she want to take over? I get it, big responsibility and all that, but… She’s been here for as long as you have. She’s worked as your assistant for so long, always believing in you and what you do...” Wheatley didn’t meet the man’s intense gaze, knowing that he couldn’t. He never could meet the gaze of those more superior than him. It made him feel queasy and wrong whenever he did. He just continued to squeeze and wring his tie, though he did it a bit more now that he was speaking. “Maybe… Maybe she’s just scared, sir. If what I think you’re implying is actually what you’re implying then… Shouldn’t that be her choice? I-in the end, I mean?”

Cave was silent for a moment before attempting to suppress another coughing fit. The air in the room was tense and almost tangible. He then exhaled slowly, the spell having passed. “I know that it sounds like I want her to be poured into a computer… and I do. She’s the only person I can trust to run this place as well as it was run in the past.” He leaned forward against his desk, his hands laced together in front of him. “If she found an assistant to help her, to be what she was to me through the years… Then I wouldn’t do this, I wouldn’t force what I’m going to force on her.” He closed his eyes. “I wish I didn’t have to, but-.”

“Then don’t force it on her, simple as that,” frowned Wheatley, interrupting the man. He knew that it was probably an invitation to get written up, or even fired, but… He couldn’t do what the man was asking of him, of all of them, not in good conscience. “She’s a good woman… She just needs to be reminded of what Aperture Science is all about, sir!” He stood, seeming to feel his confidence swell up in his chest. “Science isn’t about why-!”

“It’s about why not,” smiled Cave, raising an amused brow. Usually, he didn’t like being interrupted… but the blond had made a point. If he could avoid forcing Caroline into something she didn’t want to do, then he would do what he could. “You’re right.” He looked at each of them meaningfully. “If I’m unable to talk her into taking over on her own, however…” He trailed off, leaving the remaining words unspoken in the air about them.

They understood without being told, though it formed a pit in each of their stomachs thinking about it.

Now dismissed, they left the man’s office, returning to their respective stations with quiet farewells to one another. Baldric frowned deeply once he and Wheatley were alone once more. “You have a lot more balls than I thought, Wheat,” he told the male. “Standing up to the boss… That takes a lot of guts.”

“Yes, well… I-I will admit, now that the adrenaline has run its course, I am sweating bullets over here! Not literally of course, that isn’t physically possible, figure of speech, there, if you catch my-.”

“Rambling.”

“Right! Sorry… Happens when I’m nervous.”

“Noted.”

“Anyways…” He took a deep breath. “I know that I could never do that to Caroline. She’s so kind to all of us, and she makes sure that Mr. Johnson makes it through his work day now…” He looked up slightly at the male. “I could never do what he was asking. It’s not right… I understand his reasons, but it doesn’t make it right.” He looked back down at the ground, noting idly that his tie was now a wrinkled mess. He would have to iron it when he got home. “Not one bit.”

“Careful what you say,” Baldric sighed, shoving his hands in his pockets. “Who knows what kind of trouble you’ll get into for saying something like that…”

Back in his cubicle once more, Wheatley returned to working, hoping to take his mind off of his boss’s request. Surely Caroline would listen to reason so he wouldn’t have to risk carrying out the orders… He shook his head, trying to focus, but it wasn’t easy. It had been so preposterous, what was being asked of him. How would they even go about forcing the woman? Kidnap her and strap her into a chair and threaten her? Surely not… He bit his bottom lip, not noticing how dangerously close he was to drawing blood, his fingers stilling over the keys of his keyboard. Why was he actually thinking about it…? Surely he wasn’t actually thinking about going through with it! But…

Just how far was he willing to go to keep his job…?

He shook his head rapidly, frowning deeply at himself. No! He was a good man, he couldn’t do that to the poor woman! If she could refuse… then so could he!

…Right…?


End file.
